Terminal boards including terminal blocks for terminating and testing of underground railroad wires connected to signals, track circuits and other device on the railroad track or along the wayside are generally protected by and provided within a bungalow or similar structure at various locations along a railroad track. Current terminal board configurations may include multiple terminal blocks installed on an aluminum sheet. An insulated test link is installed between two terminal blocks, and a surge protection component, such as a lightning arrester, is also installed between two terminal blocks, with the insulated test link and the surge protection component sharing one common terminal block. The underground cable, from the common terminal block, is typically routed to the rear of the aluminum sheet and passes through the floor or a wall of the bungalow. Factory wiring is connected at the terminal block to equipment inside the bungalow for providing power and/or control signals to the equipment located on the track or along the wayside.
Such a configuration requires a piece of plywood or other suitable material to be incorporated on the rear side of the aluminum sheet. Moreover, with current terminal board configuration designs, labor installation is time consuming and difficult due to the necessity of terminating cables and installing a surge protector and test link. Field maintenance is also undesirably inconvenient due to the requirement of testing cables and replacing defective components such as the lightning arresters. Additionally, costs associated with wiring material and wiring labor are high. Thus, an improved terminal board configuration is desired.